Alabama's Rolando McClain is at head of linebacker class at NFL Combine

Mark J. Rebilas/US PresswireAlabama linebacker Rolando McClain will have the Giants sweating it out on draft day.INDIANAPOLIS — Ole Miss running back/wide receiver Dexter McCluster has noticed Rolando McClain a few times the past couple of years.

How could you not notice him?" McCluster said Saturday with a smirk.

In three years at Alabama, McClain received plenty of attention, from the time he became a starter as a freshman through last season, when he joined the late Derrick Thomas as the only Alabama linebacker to win the Butkus Award.

And now, as he makes his way toward the NFL Draft, McClain is still being recognized — as many scouts’ top-rated linebacker.

"I think everybody’s pretty much interested," McClain told reporters Saturday at the Scouting Combine. "The question is if I’m going to be available."

Among the teams rumored to have interest in McClain are: the Chiefs, Browns, Raiders and Dolphins. What do those teams have in common?

They’re all scheduled to pick ahead of the Giants, who could desperately use a middle linebacker after the neck injury suffered by Antonio Pierce inevitably led to his release earlier this month.

In order to nab McClain, the Giants would probably have to trade up from the 15th overall pick.

McClain is Pierce with more athletic ability.

The 6-3, 254-pounder is a smart, instinctive player and was a leader since he pretty much arrived on campus in Tuscaloosa. He’s a downhill run stuffer who also had four sacks last season.

"There are some plays, if you watch, it’s like, ‘He knew that play was coming. He looked at film,’" said South Carolina linebacker Eric Norwood, who watched McClain from the sideline the past couple of years and now trains with him.

Asked if that kind of awareness is a rare trait at the college level, Norwood replied, "It’s not rare, but I don’t think enough guys do it (study film). You could tell he was the leader of that defense."

McClain, who said he’d be more comfortable in a 3-4 defense than a 4-3 scheme, understands every team wants their middle linebacker to be the on-field leader.

So as the man in the middle, McClain won’t be able to hide if he starts as a rookie, which means he’s likely in for quite a challenge this year.

Then again, it’s a challenge he’s already faced.

"I had to lead seniors as a freshman," he said, adding: "A lot of guys saw the way I worked and they admired the way I worked, so it really wasn’t that hard. They actually listened."

Another area in which McClain will have to prove himself is in pass coverage. Former Texans general manager Charlie Casserly, now an analyst for NFL Network and CBS, said McClain will have to show he can be a three-down linebacker. McClain will try to do so when he runs the 40-yard dash at his pro day.

Pressure? What pressure?

"I really don’t care for pressure," McClain said. "It’s football. Either you can run or you can’t."

One legendary middle linebacker thinks McClain can run just fine and said 40 times for players at his position are overrated.